In a turbine engine, many components, such as turbine blades or vanes, are exposed to hot gases during engine operation. In order to withstand the operational environment, these components are typically cooled during engine operation. To promote cooling, these components can include a number of internal features, such as cooling channels and cavities. The inclusion of such features can dramatically increase the difficulty of manufacturing the component. Thus, the ability to manufacture a cooled turbine component economically is essential to the viability of any design.
Turbine blades are typically made by investment casting using a core to form the internal features of the blade. As a result, the core is critical to achieving the features needed to obtain the desired cooling performance of the blade. Conventionally, the core is manufactured by injection molding (low pressure or high pressure) or transfer molding. In either process, precision dies are required. The directions in which the segments of the dies are pulled apart to remove the core are important factors in the design of the core and impose limitations on the core design, as it must be ensured that the various die segments can be withdrawn without interference. As the required number of separation planes increases, it becomes increasingly challenging to separate the dies and, at some point, it becomes impossible. Thus, the design of the core can ultimately affect the design of the blade.
With the drive toward advanced cooling schemes, including near wall cooling, conventional core production methods alone will not be able to meet the requirements of the advanced designs. Thus, there is a need for a system and method that can facilitate the inclusion of advanced internal cooling features in turbine engine components.